28/08/2012

It's been a while since we last heard of James,but today he announced that he'll appear in Moscow's youth festival this week end ,here is the offocial announcement:
"I'm very honored and excited to be performing this Saturday, September
1st, in Bolotnaja Square, in MOSCOW...headlining the Moscow Youth Music
festival. Official link to the festival: http://www.moscow865.ru/

She peers out from inside her father's sheepskin coat on the cover of his debut solo LP, McCartney.
It's 1970 and she's the firstborn child of one half of perhaps the
world's greatest songwriting partnership. So enters Mary McCartney into
the world of photography: as a subject.
"I was born and bred in London," says Mary, "and I'm still based in
London, but I've recently been in Sweden where I've currently an
exhibition, and in Sardinia where I was doing a shoot for Mandarin
Oriental."
Mary McCartney, 42, as elder sister to Stella and brother James, with
an older half sister Heather, has quietly forged a career as a
photographer specialising in portraiture, with A-listers of the likes of
Ralph Fiennes and Jude Law happy to sit for her.
"I grew up around photography, watching my mother [Linda McCartney]
taking pictures," says Mary. "She and my dad collected great photography
books, so I saw those from an early age. They were beautiful vintage
black and white prints. So you'd be right in saying my mum got me into
the craft.
"I worked with my mum in her archive, helping her edit the projects
she was working on, but I've had no formal training, except for a very
short course on how to use an SLR to establish the basic principles of
exposure and film speed."
A passing car drowns out our conversation. 'In the old days when I
liked to do interviews, I'd go to the Electric in Notting Hill, but that
was noisy too,' she says, laughing. "I still use film cameras for
personal or exhibition work. But when I'm doing commercial projects I'll
use digital. I like my photographs to have the look of having been lit
by natural light, despite the necessary higher production values."
As a local, does she think London's art scene remains vibrant? "Yes,
there are some amazing painters out there at the moment. I was just
looking at the exhibits for the National Portrait Gallery Award [for
2012] which were beautiful. There is definitely a public enthusiasm and
hunger for art, and the talent is out there, but it's very difficult to
get noticed these days. There are a lot of people very passionate about
what they're doing.
"But how these artists get noticed will be the interesting thing,
because gaining exposure is difficult.' The reason for this? 'The modern
need for branding oneself might be the issue. Ten years ago there was
no need for it," says Mary.
Ten years ago London was a different place, I venture. "Yes, you can
see it when a shop closes down and you hope that something interesting
will replace it, but what comes along is usually a chain coffee shop.
"This kind of loss is also evident in places like Soho which has lost
a lot of interesting places such as The Colony Room. But thank god
places like Bar Italia are still around. Bar Italia is almost like
National Trust property! If that were to close down then I'd be very
sad. When socialising in London I prefer to find interesting,
atmospheric little places," she says.
"When I was nine, we moved out of London and then I moved back when I
was 18. I got a job as a picture researcher in Soho at Omnibus Press. I
wasn't actually taking pictures at this time. But when I got my first
commission I thought that that was it, but in reality it took me a long
time to build up my confidence and style. I learn about myself through
how I take a picture and how I approach each job."
And how has she arrived at her photographic style? "I like my
subjects to be relaxed, so my style is candid and informal. If I'm too
overbearing they can look startled; I want people to reveal themselves.
It's difficult to have subjects relax before a camera. When I started
out I was in the background, observing, but now I'm engaged upfront,
directing shoots and in control."
Can 'the eye' for taking photographs be taught? "Basic principles of
composition can, but I think I've inherited my [photographic] eye. Most
of my family can take good pictures. I grew up assuming everyone could
take good pictures because of it, then I realised not everyone can. I
was watching someone last week holding their camera at arm's length and
it seemed as if they were intimidated by the camera itself," she says.
"My dad [Paul McCartney] is very encouraging. He has some of my work
up on his walls, which is a good sign. I look for his opinion, because
he has a good eye and appreciates photography and art. He worked with my
mum in the same way too, so he's used to it."
Inspiration can be tricky for a photographer constantly at work. "I
try and balance my commercial and art work. So I have two arms, as it
were. The works of Jacques Henri Lartigue and Diane Arbus inspire me.
Juergen Teller too. I like free-spirited photographers who don't take
themselves too seriously.
"On a recent shoot, Beth Ditto was great to photograph. She has great
energy. She had a punky ethos and doesn't like to plan too much, and I
related to that because you can plan a set up in photography, but you
must leave it to the moment as well, because that's when the unexpected
can happen," says Mary.
"I'm not very techy, so if I'm off doing some personal work it's just
me and my film camera. But I also love my iPhone. I'm actually having
to ween myself off my iPhone because I've started to take too many
pictures with it. I recently bought a more high-powered digital camera,
but I like shooting on film."
So it's a case of keeping it simple? "Absolutely. I like a constant
light source rather than flash. I can also light an area in which a
subject can move around. There's that technique. I also have to be able
to go off on my own with a camera. I like the balance of these two modes
of working because it keeps me interested. I like variety," she says.
Is there more she can achieve, having photographed a wide variety of
politicians, celebrities and lesser-known sitters over her 20-year
career? "I feel I've loads more to do. I'll be exploring more and
shooting more and I've got so many projects I want to see come to
fruition. I like taking portrait pictures of interesting people and I
also rely upon requests. I have an agent, so I also get booked that
way."
For her commercial work, Mary keeps a tight-knit production team,
eschewing the large entourages of some contemporary big name
photographers. "I like photos with a sense of humanity attached to
them,' she says gently. 'I'm interested in photographing people who are
devoted to their professions, such as the series of portraits I did with
ballet dancers [Off Pointe: A Photographic Study of the Royal Ballet After Hours]."
"I'm attracted by people who invest time, thought and passion in what
they do," says Mary. "I'll always be a photographer. It's my hobby and
my profession. It's my love."

Translate

Photo

Total Pageviews

About This Blog

This blog is dedicate to Paul Mccartney the cute one and family.

You have a suggestion? Please fill in the formbelow.This Blog claims no credit for any images featured on it.If you own rights to any of the images, and do not wish them to appear on this site, please contact us via e-mail and they will be removed.